LEX INSIGHT

I saw the radiant faces of Saniya, Fahima, and Rajeena—our interns—as they concluded their month-long internship with our firm. Saniya held a detailed printed report, a testament to the fact that our collective efforts had not been in vain. Because the High Court was not in session, we had to innovate to sustain the internship’s momentum, pivoting to oral instructions, deep-dives into brief reading, and mastering the digital framework of the Kerala High Court. On their penultimate day, I challenged them with a question: How can your legal studies cross the borders of India? I reminded them that much of what is studied under the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC) culminates in a decree—yet a decree generally cannot travel beyond India’s boundaries, save for the specific provisions of Section 44A regarding reciprocating territories. I posed the same dilemma regarding criminal law: with the exception of the erstwhile Section 188 of the CrPC, how can the reach of our criminal law extend into th...

  Bridging the Vocational Gap and Reclaiming Kerala’s Place in Global Dispute Resolution Karthik J Panicker joined our firm as an intern shortly after graduating in law from Christ College, Bangalore, and transitioned into an associate role after enrolling as an advocate. At the time, he was in that state of uncertainty common to many new graduates, unsure of his next steps in life. While he possessed a bare idea that commercial practice was an area of interest, his path was not yet defined. Being the nephew of my friend and classmate—the prominent criminal trial lawyer Adv. Sajeev C.K.—he came before me. While Sajeev C.K. is a renowned expert in criminal law, Karthik’s inclination clearly leaned toward the commercial side of the profession. It was not long after his arrival that the SCL Monsoon Conference took place in July 2024. Held at the Kerala High Court Auditorium, this was Kochi's first full-fledged SCL conference, organized by SCL India and its Kerala Chapter. Karthik ha...

Tomorrow, as the Bar Council of Kerala goes to the polls, I find myself wrestling with a familiar professional delimma—not one of statutes, but of choice. In our preferential system, we have the power to cast 25 preference votes, yet every candidate is chasing that elusive "First Preference." For a voter, this creates a significant burden of accommodation. How do you rank your favorites when the list is long and the stakes for our profession are so high? This year, my own priority list has undergone an unexpected revision. I’ll be candid: Mr. Yeshwanth Shenoy did not originally find a place in my top preferences. Our history is well-known to those in the High Court; when he ran for President of the Kerala High Court Advocates’ Association, for the third time, I was perhaps his deepest critic. He lost that election, but I do not believe he was a meritless candidate; it was simply a case of a more meritorious candidate winning the day. However, when it comes to the Bar Council,...

We have recently welcomed a new intern, Mr. Ayman Ziyad. He is currently awaiting univeristy to publish his results and the Bar Council of Kerala’s election of new members and the announcement of the next enrollment schedule, hoping to be admitted as an advocate in the near future. Interestingly, from the day he joined law school, he maintained a backup plan: to shoulder the responsibilities of his family business. It is by sheer coincidence that he became part of the core research team at the Project Complete Lawyer (PCL) Foundation, where we are researching and preparing a protocol for training undergraduates and fresh graduates. A question that immediately arises is: what is the role of a young law student in the preparation of a training manual? Is this not traditionally the domain of law scholars, legal practitioners, or seasoned professionals? Whenever this question is asked, we categorically emphasize a vital point: if the protocol is designed to train undergraduates, then Ayman...

  The judicial and academic calendars clash every year. April and May mark the mid-summer vacation, during which the High Court and the civil courts across the state transition into "vacation mode." Under the High Court Act, vacation sittings are typically limited to two days a week, with only a few benches convened to hear extremely urgent matters. This period corresponds exactly with academic vacations, when regular classes at law universities and colleges are suspended. While students are required to complete their mandatory internships during this break, this "Big Bang" collision of schedules puts those choosing the High Court of Kerala at a significant disadvantage. By the time students begin their month-long break, the courts have already moved into the standby mode mentioned above, depriving them of the full experience of a functioning court. This year, the victims of this calendar confusion were three young interns from the MCT College of Legal Studies, Mel...